Escape
by Koorihouka
Summary: Reborn discovers a plot that will murder Tsuna the future. Within the hour, Tsuna disappears without a trace, leaving the Vongola without their strongest mafioso and their chosen heir. What to do, what to do? Set after the Varia Arc.
1. Escape

This was actually first written more than a year ago, but I've got no clue why I haven't posted this yet. I've decided to post this just for the sake of posting and seeing how well or badly it's received.

TimeFrame: after the Varia Arc. Yes, it was a long time ago; and yes, there's none of the new characters, but sit tight and get ready for an interesting story.

So… ENJOY! (I don't own KHR or any of the characters from the manga or anime.)

* * *

It was a perfectly normal day on this particular day. Sunlight poured through the window in Tsuna's room, and Tsuna himself was hard at work on his homework. The floor was laden with various articles of interest, as well as tests, exams, a pair of gloves, shirts, and pants. The blankets were all on the floor as well, and the bookshelf stood barren and lonely, its books strewn about the carpet. The door was closed, so as any distractions from outside would be muffled. Reborn was calmly sitting on his hammock, reading a newspaper.

"Tsuna-kun~?" called a female voice from below. Tsuna jumped and called back.

"What is it okaa-san?"

"I'm going to go out shopping, okay? Can you watch the house for an hour?"

"Y-Yeah, okay, okaa-san!"

The brief dialogue was followed by the sound of the closing front door, and the turning of the lock. The house was completely silent now. Tsuna sighed and leaned back into his chair, stretching his neck so that he could even see behind him. Reborn was oddly silent today; Tsuna was about to wonder why until Reborn calmly folded the newspaper. Then, Tsuna could see Reborn's stern expression. Tsuna frowned.

_He's never like this…_

Reborn dropped the newspaper on his bed. Actually, it "fell" so hard, the bed's legs broke off the bed rack, and the mattress fell to the floor with a _thump_.

"EHH- Reborn-"

"Look," Reborn said with an eerily commanding tone, "at the newspaper, Dame-Tsuna."

"Whaa…" breathed Tsuna, as he righted himself and turned the chair. He stood up and retrieved the newspaper, reading aloud the headlines as if he were really stupid.

"Car Accident without any drivers or passengers – a kidnapped middle-schooler found dead," Tsuna said. Then he looked at the picture – the largest one showed an aerial view of the car crash. Two expensive black cars were left on the street, still smoking from the engine. It was a rear-end to front-end collision, so one car was in front of the other. Tsuna continued to read the article.

"Namimori – It was a perfectly normal afternoon, until the sound of screeching tires echoed across the neighborhood. The clash of metal alarmed many in the neighborhood. As a bold citizen called the police, many people crowd around the street junction to investigate the scene. The police arrived, and cleared the area of the curious people to conduct an investigation. There had been no people whatsoever in the two cars, but there had been a number of things found in the cars – a handkerchief and an empty pouch. Once the two cars had been safely separated, the trunk of the first car was opened, to find an unmoving teenager in a straitjacket. His face was exposed to be a…student…at the local…middle…school…" Tsuna was trembling now, and stopped reading. Reborn frowned.

"Go on, read it."

"H-His face was e-exposed to be a student at the l-local m-m-middle s-s-s-sch-school – Sawada Tsunayoshi." Tsuna fell to his knees.

_It's me…_

"Tsuna, this is tonight's newspaper. The event on headlines is to happen in one hour; they are arriving here within minutes, Tsuna."

"B-By _they_, who do y-you mean?"

"Assassinators, Dame-Tsuna!" Reborn leaped off his hammock, onto Tsuna's broken bed. "They're coming soon; get your gloves, your ring, and your Dying Will pills from Basil. We're going to Korea."

"Korea?" shrieked Tsuna.

"Shush," said Reborn. "Don't be too loud; they should be pulling up by now." He leaped to the window, and looked out. "Yep, they're here. Come on, Dame-Tsuna, get over here!" Reborn dashed out of Tsuna's room and into another; its window faced the back yard.

"Ah- Reborn!" Tsuna scrambled after his home tutor, to find Reborn inching the window open. Reborn jumped, and landed in their backyard tree. Tsuna ran up to the window.

"Jump!"

"Wha- Reborn!" Tsuna looked at Reborn, begging him to not let him do this. He looked back fearfully took a gulp, and jumped. He made it, and he opened his eyes in surprise. He wasn't on the ground. Reborn tugged on Tsuna's sleeve and motioned to the next tree. Tsuna paled and told his tutor, "No, I can't do this!"

"Come _on_!" Reborn growled. He twitched, and Tsuna knew for a fact that wasn't good. So he took one big breath and jumped again. He made it – again.

"You have your pills?" breathed Reborn. He looked out to the driveway. The two cars were parked in front of Tsuna's house, and a few suited men stood before it, guarding the possessions inside. He sighed and repeated, "Do you have the case of pills Basil gave you?"

"N-N-N-N-No…" stuttered Tsuna, shutting his eyes tight in fear of the punishment Reborn would deal to him. Reborn just sighed and leaped back to the other tree.

"Leon!" he called. The green lizard emerged at the window. "Is it locked?" The lizard nodded. "Pills!" Leon nodded again, disappeared to get it, and reappeared with the case in its hands. With a simple toss, the case flew into Reborn's hands, and Leon disappeared from sight again. Reborn returned to the tree Tsuna was in. "Here; don't ever forget it again." And just like that, Tsuna opened his eyes in amazement. He nodded.

"Come on; they're in the house now. Swallow two pills," Reborn swung himself onto Tsuna's back. Tsuna did as he was bid, and the Dying Will Flame sprung from his forehead. Reborn spoke up again. "Get us out of here – now."

"What? I can't-"

"I know, Tsuna. But if you stay, you're dead, and they're dead. For sure. You ever read _The Count of Monte Cristo_?"

"Eh-"

"Just fly!"

And with that, Tsuna burst out of the tree, flying into the sky until a mere speck was left of him.

* * *

Make sure to review and tell me what to think~

Fave/Alert if you like, I'd appreciate it!

Stay tuned for more tomorrow~ 3


	2. Death

Again, I'm back with old material for this newly-posted story! :D

Enjoy, my lovely little readers. (I don't own KHR or any characters affiliated with KHR.)

* * *

"And because of you being loud," said Reborn, "We aren't going to Korea – we're going to Russia."

_What?_

"You have to fly farther now; that's your punishment, got that? And you can't drop dead in the middle of the sea either."

Tsuna sighed. _Oh – and where's Leon?_

"Ah, Leon? He's saving your life, dim-wit. He's being the decoy."

_But I thought he could only change into things that are green…_

"That's when he's conserving energy. When there's a real emergency, well, that's a different matter altogether."

_What? He's going to be at my funeral?_

"Yeah."

Tsuna fell silent. Reborn frowned.

"You're thinking of everyone you left behind, aren't you?"

_I-I'm already dead to them, right?_

"Depends on who you're dealing with. The stupider ones would believe it though."

_Reborn, you've __**got**__ to be kidding me._

"Ah, so now I'm not the only one who could read minds now, hm? Ah, now that there aren't any distractions around, I can actually get you to train properly now."

_How can I train if I'm supposed to be dead?_

"I have my sources, Tsuna. Now shut up and fly. You have over a hundred nautical miles to go."

_What?_

"Have you ever heard of rationing energy?"

Tsuna chuckled darkly and fell silent, brooding with his own thoughts. _Where did he get that newspaper in the first place…_

Reborn frowned, but decided to save his energy as well. It was going to be a long trip.

* * *

Gokudera was traveling down the road to Juudaime's house one day strolling comfortably along, until _someone_ met up with him at a crossroad.

"Hey, Gokudera!" beamed Yamamoto.

"Shut up."

"Hey…" Yamamoto patted Gokudera on the head. "Be nice." He laughed. Gokudera brooded and resisted the urge to shout at him – of course, that wasn't polite to Juudaime, whose house was only a block away. They both walked along, and reached a turn. They turned, and Gokudera abruptly stopped for a moment.

_What happened?_

There was a crowd of people gathered around some smoking object. Gokudera made his way through the crowd to clearly see what it was. He immediately recognized it – it wasn't accidental. It was mafia work. The police were all over the place, and didn't allow him to get any closer. But most of the scene could be seen by everyone – both cars were empty, devoid of any passengers or drivers. But when they pulled the cars apart, and when they opened the trunk, when they brought a bundle with a tuft of brown hair sticking out, and when they opened the straitjacket; when they exposed his unmoving face…

He suddenly began to back away from the group in disbelief. The gathered people started to murmur.

"Ah, isn't that T-Tsuna?"

"Yeah, Sawada-san…"

Gokudera turned his back and ran, far, far, far away. _No, Juudaime couldn't die… No he just couldn't, no…not now. We've just fought off the Varia! We've fought for our place as Vongola Tenth and his Guardians! He died like Mom… Was it Dad? No…no…Whoever did this must pay… Juudaime!_

Yamamoto frowned. He saw Gokudera break away from the group; but Yamamoto wouldn't believe that Tsuna would have really died from a simple car-crash. He's defeated Xanxus already, how could he die from a _car-crash? _He, too, broke away from the group. He wanted to find Reborn.

Reborn definitely wouldn't have allowed this to happen.

* * *

"Tsuna-kun? Huu, why is there a big crowd here…?" wondered Nana.

"I don't know – I'll go see," said Bianchi. Lambo, I-Pin, and Fuuta looked on silently with Nana as Bianchi went to check.

When Bianchi came back, she was pale.

"EHH? Bianchi-saan," snickered Lambo. "Why do you look like a ghost?" Bianchi sent a death glare to Lambo, which silenced him instantly.

"It's Tsuna," answered Bianchi. "He's been in a car-crash." Nana dropped her groceries, her body quaking in shock.

"Tsu-Tsu-kun?" she stuttered. "Tsu-kun!" She ran into the crowd and rushed through the layers of people. "Tsu-kun! I'm his mother- Let me through! Tsu-kun!" Her sobs were heard, intertwined in her voice. "No…Tsu-kun…"

I-Pin was silent, as well as Fuuta. Lambo looked up to Bianchi.

"Ehh? What happened?" he asked, tugging Bianchi's pants. "What happened? What happened?"

"Shush, Lambo," growled Bianchi. "Tsuna…Tsuna's dead."

* * *

Word got around Namimori quite rapidly. _Sawada Tsunayoshi is dead…Died in a car crash…Dame-Tsuna is dead… _Everyone that lived in Tsuna's household was plunged into grief. Gokudera seemingly disappeared. Yamamoto stayed, still helping out his dad with the sushi. The Sasagawa family was also affected with the blow of Tsuna's death; both Kyoko and Ryohei didn't feel like talking much now. Hibari was quite enraged; Tsuna had actually had the nerve to die on the grounds of Namimori. Mukuro and Chrome weren't too happy either. Mukuro no longer had a target, and Chrome was naturally sad from the death of her boss – it meant life without a mafia family, and probably no reason to remain in school.

A week later, the funeral was filled with people. Tsuna's coffin was elaborate and beautiful, a tribute to the late Vongola Decimo. Reborn's absence was unusual as well – searches were conducted, but in vain. The Ninth, still recovering from the time he had in Gola Mosca, was put into an unusual situation – without his most trusted Mafioso or his heir to the seat of Vongola, he either had to hope for their impossible return or to select another heir and hope the new heir would be fine enough to rule after his death.

Of course, that wouldn't work. So he planned to live as long as he could, to delay the decision as long as possible.

Time flew by. Gokudera and Dr. Shamal returned to Italy. The former class 2A graduated from middle school. Everyone moved on. Bianchi, Lambo, I-Pin, they all left. Nana, Tsuna's mother, remained in the same house, living life as normally as she could. She occasionally helped out at Yamamoto's Takesushi shop, as well as cleaning out the house every so often. Sawada Iemitsu was sent back home for some time to accompany his wife in grief. Chrome and Mukuro disappeared out of Kokuyo, along with Ken and Chikusa. Hibari was as strict as ever; he quickly moved on from Tsuna's death.

The Guardians remained the same; none of the rings had been taken from them yet. However, a new successor was named. The name hadn't been released; nobody knew except that person and the Ninth.

Years flew by. Spring came, and Yamamoto graduated from high school. Haru and Kyoko graduated as well, both finding jobs while they dealt with college selection. Tsuna's mom cried a little, sitting at home, thinking of her son. Iemitsu came home again for a few days to rest, by order of the Ninth.

Reborn still hadn't been found.

* * *

Oh, dear. WHAT WILL HAPPEN? Stay tuned, and find out… TOMORROW!

Don't forget to review and tell me what you thought about the story~


	3. Apparition

Third update of the story! (I don't own KHR or any affiliated characters.)

Gokudera's colorful vocabulary was slightly limited, due to my younger self's strong distaste for profanity. Strangely, now I find the profanity-censoring is rather childish. I uncensored the little bit; this is, indeed, a T-rated story where some profanity is allowed.

I apologize if you dislike profanity, though this **is** a T-rated story. Hopefully, you've considered presence of profanity before reading my story at all.

Well, don't let two words bother you too much. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy the show, my dear readers! ;D

* * *

The airport was crowded with people rolling along luggage in rolling luggage cases and other people rushing about as they carried out duties and errands. Lights flashed here and there, stores advertising their products. The nineteen-year-old looked around the crowd, tip-toeing to see above the crowd.

_Where's my flight gate? God, are these Americans so tall…_

He gritted his teeth to control himself and looked around once more. There was a Starbucks coffee store there, a Free Temptation, and a few food stores. He turned on the spot; he was looking in the wrong way. The flight gate numbers. The nearest one displayed a bold number: 40. His gate number was 35. Close, but not quite there. He turned to head towards the smaller flight gate numbers, squeezing through the crowd to his flight gate. He had never expected that this airport would be so stuffed with people.

There was a certain person he hadn't noticed past the crowd. There was a certain grumbling man in a suit, sitting at the Starbucks window, looking out, scanning the outside. He drank more of his coffee and gruffly set it down on his table, if not smashing it down like a meteor.

He hated life now. He hated life so much now, after Juudaime died.

Gokudera Hayato was now an official hitman of the Vongola family, the Storm Guardian of the esteemed Vongola Family. Thank God the Ninth was still alive; if the Ninth died, there was no proper Tenth to replace the Ninth, and nobody but Juudaime should be the rightful Tenth. Whoever was placed in Juudaime's rightful seat, Gokudera would beat to pieces; even if it means to be killed by the Vongola itself. Presently, he was in a worse mood; his cigarettes ran out. His last pack. The ones at Free Temptation were too pricey, and they weren't any good either. Not strong enough to last, and not strong enough to light a single _damn fucking_ stick of dynamite.

Gokudera chugged down another cup of Starbucks coffee. Too much water; the Guardian groaned to himself. He brought the coffee cup down drunkenly, as if setting a beer bottle down. He glared around, thinking to buy another cup, but refusing to. He stood up, calmly dropping the cup – which surprisingly hadn't broken – into the trash. He walked out of the store, hands in his pockets. He was looking for a target, and right now, he was on a false lead. He had rigged the false lead himself; Gokudera needed time alone, without all the other Vongola hitmen bothering him all the time. Though Yamamoto was gone still trying for the Major Leagues, the Vongola itself had its annoying hitmen, who proved equally as irritating and persistent to annoy as the baseball-idiot.

As he was looking around carelessly, Gokudera caught sight of a familiar tuft of brown hair jutting out from a sea of people, a familiar pair of eyes peeking above the crowd. Gokudera froze; his legs oddly felt weak. The possibility slapped him square in the face.

_It can't be Juudaime, can it? No, stupid, he's dead; I've seen him in his coffin, I've been to his funeral, I've seen him, dead, the moment his face was revealed from the straitjacket. It can't be! No… I have to make sure it's him._

_Who the hell thinks he can impersonate __**the Tenth**__?_

Gokudera took off, diving into the crowd after the Juudaime-look-alike. The Juudaime-look-alike seemed to have a flight to catch; he was hurrying about as if he did. It was one of the high thirties, surely.

"J-Juudaime!" shouted Gokudera, his words weirdly strangled and uneven, a far cry from the fluent Japanese he used to speak. He hadn't been to Japan in years. "Juudaime!" The shouts were buried among the bustling of the crowd around him; the Juudaime-look-alike didn't turn. Gokudera gritted his teeth in frustration and picked up his pace. Suddenly, the Juudaime-look-alike turned off at gate 35. Gokudera's eyes widened.

That mysterious person wore the clothes that Juudiame would wear. That mysterious person had the same expression Juudaime would have. That mysterious person had the same brown eyes, the same hair color, the same hair style. However, that Juudaime-look-alike had a feeling about him as if he were…used to America. Like he lived somewhere here, in New England. A college student? Gokudera had dropped high school in Namimori, soon afterwards entering a mafia university. By now, Tsuna would be in college, naturally. Yamamoto had a baseball scholarship into a college, as long as he played in the team. Gokudera clenched his teeth in determination. He was going to find out exactly who this person was.

As Gokudera fought against the crowd, the mysterious person walked up to the gate entrance and gave the attendant a flight ticket. The flight attendant returned the ticket after running it through an authenticity-checking mechanism, and let the Juudaime-look-alike through. Gokudera frowned and looked to the flights board.

_New York International to Rome International? This plane is going to Italy…_

He rushed to the desk, where an attendant sat, apparently busy.

"Can I buy a ticket on this plane, please?" he demanded. The lady seemed mildly surprised at the sudden demand, but glanced at Gokudera and looked back to the screen.

"I would like to have identification, please, and tell me what you would like to purchase," the lady said calmly. "First-class, business, or just economy?" She glanced up.

"B-Business," answered Gokudera, reaching into his coat. "I have my passport here, and driver's license." He handed the lady both passports and driver's license.

"Italian?" questioned the lady. Gokudera nodded. "Well, business class, you ask? Credit, debit, or cash?"

"Credit," replied Gokudera, handing the lady a credit card. The lady frowned, not recognizing the company. But she shrugged and swiped it, as the credit card swiping machine thing could recognize a range of credit cards that even she could not remember. The attendant handed Gokudera his passport, driver's license, and credit card. After waiting for the ticket to print out, she handed the ticket over as well. Gokudera accepted it and rushed to the gate, anxious to find that Juudaime-look-alike.

* * *

So, the plot thickens. Again, don't forget to review!

Stay tuned for an update on 12/26! There will be a break for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day so everyone can enjoy Christmas to the fullest with the family or find the fanfiction list saturated with Christmas-themed specials.

ALSO: I'll be leaving on a trip for three days: 12/27~12/29. Sadly, there will be no posts at that time. SORRY! There will be a post **as soon** as I get back.

**MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!**


	4. Reunion

Actually, there will be no posts until after New Year's Day. I'll be gone on my trip, and back late on the 30th.

Enjoy the next installment, my readers. ;]

* * *

"Welcome aboard," smiled a flight attendant, her shining eyes beaming at the next flyer. She looked down to the ticket. "Ahh, madam, your seat will be down that aisle." She motioned down the aisle of the airplane, and the middle-aged American lady walked on. She beamed to the next person, about to repeat the same exact thing.

"Welcome-" she stopped as she opened her eyes to see who was next. Her eyes widened, and she fell silent. "W-Welcome aboard…sir…" She forced a smile to the next person. Her name-tag shined in the artificial light in the plane.

_Haru Miura_

"Hello, er," the college-looking man glanced down to the name tag. "Ha-ru Mi-u-ra… Haru Miura." He looked up and smiled. "Well, good day, Haru."

"T-Tsuna-san!" Haru burst, before she could keep herself from saying it. She covered her mouth in embarrassment. The person just blinked in confusion, a moment of perking up as if it were his name. He smiled again.

"I'm Peter Natsume; my friends sometimes mix around my name as Tsuna, which is a stand-in for tuna," smiled the man. "College student from Harvard for the-uh…the world trip? I've been told I have a special seat."

"Ah-Ahh, then, er, Peter, this way," Haru led the man down the aisle. "The ticket you have has been updated for no extra cost; you have a business class!" The man's face brightened up, the way Tsuna's expression would.

"Ahh, really?" smiled Peter Natsume. "That's always better than cramped seats that are getting even more cramped every year." Haru and Peter went down the aisle, past the first-class seats. The business class seats were next; Haru led Peter to a window to the side, the second row to the front.

"This entire row is empty," Haru told Peter. "So I'd advise you, relax, and we'll be leaving New York shortly." Haru turned and left, sneaking to the kitchen and food preparation areas between the sections of seats.

"Kyoko!" Haru whispered. She tapped Kyoko's shoulder. "Look!" She pointed. Kyoko turned, and her mouth dropped open in shock.

"Who-Who's that?" Kyoko whispered back.

"Peter Natsume," replied Haru. "Harvard kid." She looked back to Peter, looking out the window in boredom. "He looks so much like Tsuna-san!"

"I know…" mumbled Kyoko, looking at Peter. "Okay, Haru, back to work. After our shift's over, we can get to the bottom of this." Haru nodded in determination.

"I'll be at the entrance then."

* * *

"Welcome aboard," beamed Haru. She was so dead bored of the welcoming; the flyers seemed to never stop coming in. She looked up. "Welcome aboard to-" And she gaped for the second time that day.

"Tako-head?" she choked.

"Stupid woman," muttered Gokudera. "So this is the first time we've met in five years?" He looked hatefully at Haru. "What are you doing here?"

"Part-time job, stupid," snapped Haru. "You? Why did you run back to Italy anyway? And now you're doing it again?"

"None of your business," growled Gokudera. Haru fell silent. _Tsuna-san and Gokudera-san on the same plane? Same flight? Obviously, Gokudera-san knows something about this._

"Did- Did you see Tsuna-san anywhere?" Haru paled. Gokudera looked at Haru weirdly with a raised eyebrow.

"That's what I thought…you get any information out of him?" asked Gokudera, frowning.

"Peter Natsume, he said. Harvard kid on the world trip," replied Haru. "He says his friends call him…Tsuna."

"Suspicious," muttered Gokudera, walking on. Haru ducked out of the way of the fuming Gokudera, frowning. It was the first time they've met in a long time; and he was steaming mad for some reason. It was obviously unusual.

Gokudera walked on. Haru was here? On a part time job, she says. Well, she would have just graduated from high school. She would have gotten a college, and planned to make some money before the first day of school. He passed the first-class seats and walked on, ignoring the people around him, immersed in his thoughts. So much for his fake lead. He was going straight back to Vongola Headquarters, back to where he was before. Absolute _hell_ with those annoying other hitmen.

He looked down. It was his seat. And it was undoubtedly the third time he's been surprised.

"Ohhh," groaned Gokudera. "Don't tell me – now everyone's here?" His temper was just cut two times shorter than before.

"Maa, maa, Gokudera, I'm on my part-time job, too!" beamed the familiar baseball player. "So you're sitting with me?"

"Shut up," muttered Gokudera. "Baseball-idiot." He sat down in the window-seat row, the seat on the very edge. Yamamoto Takeshi sat on the seat beside the window.

* * *

"So," began Yamamoto. "What brought you here to America? Thought you went to Italy."

"I was on a lead," muttered Gokudera. "But it was a fake one. Didn't catch my little target."

"Tche," Yamamoto looked out the window. "So you're still with the Vongola?" He forced a dark smile. "I tried making the Major Leagues here in America; got pretty good with English. Heh." He shrugged. "A few teams asked me to join, as the rest thought my baseball was way out of their reach. Well, even the nation's best couldn't match mine." Yamamoto beamed, but his smile wavered. He looked to Gokudera. "Was Reborn ever found?"

Gokudera shook his head.

"It's been like, what, five years? No way Reborn's just going to appear like _poof_ five years after he's disappeared," grumbled he. He had no intention to tell Yamamoto about that Peter Natsume. Of course, Yamamoto would only be surprised, and probably would dismiss the possibility without missing a beat. Nobody was going to tell him that Juudaime's dead. Juudaime was invincible – he couldn't die, right? Gokudera chuckled darkly inside; so many people had died when he believed they wouldn't. "What the hell are you doing here anyway? Going to Italy? You're a baseball player, aren't you?"

"Nah," Yamamoto shook his head. "Coming back to the Vongola. Baseball's too little of a sport to satisfy me now."

* * *

Who's this Peter Natsume kid? What's he doing on the way to Italy? What are the Tenth's Guardians going to do to find out?

Stay tuned for the next installment…next year. Thanks for reading! (Don't forget to review! Thank you much~~)


	5. OneWay Mirror

Wow, time flies when you're having fun. School's starting tomorrow, which means writing will come to a complete standstill. Posting will slow to a stop, sadly, but I will be trying my best to finish the story.

Enjoy the new update! I don't own KHR.

* * *

_Haru, Gokudera, even Yamamoto? Likely Kyoko, too. _Tsuna kept an even face on the surface; on the inside, he was raging against himself._ Why are they even here? It's dangerous!_

He clenched his teeth and looked out of the window, forcing himself to forget about worrying about them for now. He wasn't supposed to know them. He has been Peter Natsume for nearly five years now; after some training in Russia, Reborn took him onto a plane headed for America. And that was how he learned of a college called Harvard. He actually enrolled; the professors there knew Reborn quite well – Boreen. He had quite a little training there for the rest of the five years since his 'death.'

Now, he was going back to Italy – the Ninth's health was failing. He had to take the title of Boss before the Ninth died; or else, there was no heir to the Vongola, and it would be very troublesome to transfer the power that the lower ranks would have stolen by then. After a while in Harvard, Reborn finally came clean with the whole matter – he told Tsuna absolutely everything he knew. Otherwise, Tsuna wouldn't have been on this plane, on his way to see the Ninth, face-to-face for the first time and possibly for the last time of their lives.

The plane taxied to the runway.

* * *

"We are cruising at an altitude of about two thousand feet above sea level, at about 625 mph. Please relax and enjoy the rest of the flight!" the speaker crackled in and out. It was the cue for the snack carts to begin their long journey from one end of the plane to the other. Kyoko told herself to be calm and casual. She is going to find out for herself what exactly this Peter Natsume is, and there won't be anything stopping her.

She strolled down the aisle, smiling down to the passengers and asking them if they wanted something from the cart. For some weird reason, this reminded her faintly of a book she'd read before – no, a series of books, the first one. Something about some magical boy going off to a magical school- It was Harry Potter, wasn't it? She was that lady with the cart, walking down to Harry's compartment and Harry would buy everything off the cart. She wondered if that Peter would do something like that. After all, he must be rich to get into a school like Harvard; he doesn't look like one to have been brought up in a poor environment.

"Hi," Kyoko smiled down to Peter as she passed. "Would you like to have some snacks or something? It's a long flight, you know." Peter jolted awake and looked up; it was as if he was dazing or lost in his thoughts. "What do you want?"

"H-how much for a…a-uhh…" Peter frowned. "I'll just have some water then. Some water a-and some instant noodles? No, I'll just have some instant noodles if you've got them." He looked away and sighed, sitting back into his seat. "Please, instant noodles. I'll even pay for them if you want." Kyoko shook her head.

"I'll get them for you immediately, err, P-Peter," Kyoko faked a smile and backed away into the food-preparation kitchen. "That Harvard kid wants instant noodles," she frowned, blinking at Haru. Haru immediately gasped.

"Now?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, now!" nodded Kyoko. "I'll go ahead with the cart; you get them for Tsuna-ku- Peter. You get them for Peter." Haru's expression saddened, as did Kyoko.

"Brings back memories, doesn't it?" Haru looked to Peter, sitting in his seat and thinking about something only God knows what. "Tsuna-san…"

"W-Well then, you get going with the instant noodles," blinked Kyoko, hiding herself behind a smile. "I'll be going then." She went out with the cart again.

"Snacks? Anyone want snacks?" she called. "Sna~cks!"

"Ahh- over here, miss!" chuckled a voice on the other end.

"Coming!" rang Kyoko, and she pushed the cart in that direction. "Now, what do you two misters want today?" She looked down and flinched.

"Sasagawa-san?" blinked Yamamoto. "It's been a while!"

"Lookie here, seems Haru's been telling the truth," frowned Kyoko. "Gokudera-san's back?" Gokudera was busy brooding, so he ignored Kyoko. "Okay, okay, then. Fine. What snacks do you want?" she half-laughed nervously.

"Nothing from the cart, though," Yamamoto frowned good-naturedly. "We're here to learn a little more about that weird Peter Natsume guy. Heard he boarded this plane, didn't he?" Yamamoto grinned sheepishly. "Met him when I was tryin' out for the Yankees. I've always been a little curious about that guy." Gokudera whipped around.

"You know that guy?" frowned Gokudera. "Does he know…you?"

"Yup," nodded Yamamoto, but he frowned. "He never really asked my name, so I think he only knows me by face, that is, if he remembers me. We've only met for five minutes." Gokudera gritted his teeth.

"Well, _of course_ it's better than nothing!" he growled. "You go break the ice first. It won't make any sense if a complete stranger comes up to him and say hello." He was very unhappy about it, but he had to be logical. If it was truly Juudaime, he'd immediately recognize Yamamoto.

"A-Ahh…" a voice chuckled nervously. Kyoko turned. "I'm sorry, I-uh, wanted to ask a flight attendant when we'll be arriving in Italy…" It was Peter, the Harvard kid. He scratched his head nervously. "S-Sorry, did I interrupt something?" Peter looked from one face to another, blinking in confusion.

"Oh-uhh, we'll be arriving in eight hours, Peter, so there's still plenty of time you'll be on this plane," Kyoko half-laughed back. She looked to Gokudera and Yamamoto. "You guys sure you don't want anything?" Both guys shook their heads. "Okay then." Kyoko moved on. Peter turned to Yamamoto and Gokudera, gave them a courteous smile, and walked back to his seat. Gokudera turned in his chair to see where Peter sat; it wasn't far from the end of the plane section. He sat back down in his seat, grumbling.

"He didn't recognize me," remarked Yamamoto.

"That Peter kid treated us like god-fucking _strangers_," snarled Gokudera. "No way he's Juudaime." Yamamoto turned to Gokudera and chuckled.

"You think he's Tsuna?" Yamamoto raised an eyebrow. The Storm Guardian looked up irritably at Yamamoto and decided he can't stand looking at it anymore; it annoyed him too much to bear. He turned to look out the window.

* * *

To those who knew Peter Natsume was Tsuna, kudos to you! Wait, but why doesn't Tsuna tell his Guardians who he is?

Stay tuned! From now on, I'll make longer chapters, but update much less often… Sorry, schoolwork does this a lot to me…

Well, until next time, everyone!


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